INVOLVEMENT OF ANNEXIN-I AN ANNEXIN-II IN HUMAN LIVER-CIRRHOSIS AND HEPATOCELLULAR-CARCINOMA

Annexin (AX) is the name of a new family of Ca2+-dependent membrane bi nding proteins of which 13 members have been reported to date, Among t hese, AXI and AXII have been reported to possess many biological funct ions in vitro. Their actual roles in vivo, however, are as yet unknown , There have been no reports previously demonstrating the direct invol vement of AXI and AXII in chronic hepatitis (CH), liver cirrhosis (LC) or hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), The involvement of AXI and AXII in the etiological processes of CH, LC and HCC was investigated by Weste rn blot and/or immunohistochemistry using anti-AXI and AXII antibodies , AXI and AXII were rarely detected in CH liver tissues, while they we re found to be expressed at high levels in LC and HCC, AXI and AXII we re present in the hepatocytes of LC and HCC and their subcellular loca lization was mainly cytoplasmic. These results indicate that AXI and A XII may act together in the occurrence and development of LC and HCC.